A Japanese director’s “Shoplifters”, a story of an impoverished family, won the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival on Saturday. The film portrays human connections through a Tokyo family that lives in poverty.

The government announced on Friday that the Emperor is set to abdicate on April 30, 2019, after a meeting of the Imperial House Council. His eldest son, the Crown Prince, will ascend the throne a day later.

A Japanese national research institute said on Monday that a geological period from 126,000 to 770,000 years ago will soon be called “Chibanian.” The name is based on a stratum discovered in Chiba Prefecture.

The planned engagement of Princess Mako has triggered a debate on the male-only succession to the imperial throne. After her marriage, the number of imperial family members is expected to drop to 18

The Imperial Household Agency on Wednesday dismissed media reports that the Japanese Emperor, 82, intends to abdicate the throne before he dies.

Japan’s government said on Tuesday that it may cut its funding for UNESCO after the organization added Chinese documents on the Nanjing Massacre to its Memory of the World Register.

The National Tax Agency plans to define “Japanese sake” as a home-brewed alcoholic drink made from local ingredients in order to differentiate it from foreign-made sake.